Staff Focus
Role: Guest Service Apprentice
Jess Goodwin
Nationality: British
Employment dates: September 2022 to date
Jess emailed the hotel directly enquiring about apprenticeships. At her interview it was quite apparent that Jess had all of the qualities that we look for when recruiting new team members. She was enthusiastic, interested, she had done her research on the hotel and displayed a natural willingness to learn and help.
Since commencing her apprenticeship, she has exceeded our expectations and she is doing extremely well and is liked and respected by all. We are very lucky to have Jess in our team and she has a bright future ahead of her.
We asked Jess to summarise her time with us so far.
“My name is Jess and I am currently doing a hospitality level 2 apprenticeship. So far I have really enjoyed my time at Marsham court as it’s given me so much experience linking to the career I want in events. Since starting in September 2022 I have been welcomed into the Marsham family by everyone, all staff were willing to help me and give me the boost I needed to grow further in my job role.
The management team has been very helpful by giving me the opportunity to work in multiple departments such as restaurant, bar and events. This has been such a big part of my journey so far as it’s shown me what different job roles involve.
I am very excited to keep learning new things each day and develop further with the help of all my managers and colleagues”.
Role: Hospitality Apprentice/Trainee Receptionist
SOPHIE GEORGE
Nationality: British
Employment dates: September 2018 to 2020
Sophie joined the team at the hotel as a hospitality apprentice working in the restaurant and on events in September 2018.
Sophie’s apprenticeship scheme meant she worked four days at the hotel and spent one day a week at college.
Sophie was an extremely hard worker right from the beginning. She was always very enthusiastic and had a “thirst ” for learning, learnt her duties quickly and to a high standard. Sophie was a team player liked and respected by her managers, colleagues and loved by the guests.
Due to her hard work and commitment on quieter nights she was trusted in running the restaurant and on busier days as a supervisor she managed large sections of the restaurant with her own small team.
Sophie successfully completed her apprenticeship in October 2019, with her final observation being in December 2019 where she gained a distinction.
In December 2019 even though Sophie had no experience or knowledge we approached her about working on our busy reception desk as a receptionist commencing early January 2020.
She readily accepted the new role and challenge and from day one she adapted to her new position with great enthusiasm. Technically there were many things she needed to learn and as she had the right attitude and approach she learnt her new skills quickly and efficiently. Sophie never forgot to smile and put the guest needs first during this training period.
Sophie is a credit to herself and her work colleagues. She is an example to us all that if you are enthusiastic and hardworking, the Marsham Court can train you in the technical skills you need to do any role.
We asked Sophie to share some of her thoughts about her experience working at the Marsham Court. Here’s what she had to say:-
I have learnt so much from working at the hotel. I started not knowing anything about the industry and having little confidence, but with the help of all my managers and my colleagues I was able to progress.
Rosie and Simon gave me the amazing opportunity to work at the reception desk where I got an opportunity to prove myself and show them that if you have the right mindset you can quickly learn and adapt to the skills needed for the role.
I enjoy working at the hotel because all the staff are very friendly. I am thankful to get the opportunity to learn something new every day’.
Role: Junior Guest Services Manager
SOPHIE GEORGE
Nationality: British
Employment dates: January 2022 to date
When Sophie approached us about returning to the MCH we were delighted as she always worked incredibly hard with great enthusiasm and attention to detail.
Sophie quickly adapted back into the hotel and made some positive changes to how we operated our Night Shifts and when a position became available as a GSM we approached Sophie as her core skills matched the role. We knew that we would need to support her to develop further, but we saw great potential in Sophie and our ethos here is to grow and develop from within.
In January 2022 after travelling around the UK, I wanted to return to the Marsham Court because I missed the atmosphere of the hotel.
I came for an interview and the only position that was available was a Night Porter position. I was unsure about this but agreed to the position as I wanted to come back. During my time as a Night Porter I got to continue my growth, improving my problem solving and I gained confidence looking after the hotel on my own.
I was a Night Porter for two and a half months when an opportunity arose to be a Guest Service Manager. I spoke with James who gave me the confidence to believe I could succeed. Having been in the role for over 4 months there have been a lot of challenges but with the support of the team and the owners I feel comfortable in my new role and look forward to my future at the Marsham Court.
Role: Degree Placement Student
Thanh Dat Pham
Nationality: Vietnamese
Employment dates: June 2022 to Date
Dat is a degree student who approached us to do a 30 week placement. He had been recommended to contact us from a former student in his home town in Vietnam.
From the moment we met Dat at his interview, we knew we wanted to give him the opportunity to work with us. He had a lovely, warm persona – a natural smile and warmth and willingness to learn.
With no previous experience in Hospitality, we wanted to give him the opportunity because what we believe in here is that we can train skills, but a natural desire to be here and go the extra mile every day to deliver the exceptional customer experience that we believe in, has to come naturally from the individual. We are pleased to say that Dat is doing exceptionally well and is a credit to himself and his colleagues.
We asked Dat to share his feelings about his experience so far.......
"Hi, my name is Dat - a master's student in Tourism Management at Bournemouth University. I'm currently doing a 30-week placement at Marsham Court Hotel, Bournemouth as a Guest Services Assistant.
My placement experience so far has been really amazing as I have been enrolled in different roles in the restaurant, bar and events. I feel extremely welcomed here at the Marsham Court family since everybody is friendly and more than willing to help each other at work.
There are always things to learn here and I have seen many growths within myself. I'm excited to carry on with my journey at the hotel to get myself ready for my future career in the hospitality industry."
Role: Youth Mobility Scheme Student
Yumi Onimaru
Nationality: Japanese
Employment dates: September 2022 to Date
Yumi’s application was sent to us via the Youth Mobility Scheme ( YMS) as soon as we met Yumi we loved her energy and warm smile, she was enthusiastic to be at the interview and the possibility to be working with us, even though she had very little hospitality experience her personality is exactly what we look for when we recruit team members, we hired her on the spot !
Since joining our team Yumi has become a popular team player ,everybody likes to work with her and she is a firm favourite with our guests too….she is a great example of the ethos we believe in …employ happy enthusiastic people and we can train them the technical skills to do the role …..
We asked Yumi to share her feelings about her experience so far.......
"I am Yumi, and I am from Japan. I have a working holiday (Youth Mobility Scheme) visa that allows me to stay in the UK for up to two years and have been in Bournemouth since February this year. For the first six months, I attended a language school in Bournemouth and worked hard to improve my English ability and I came across a YMS program at this school. The program is an employment support service provided by the IEA(International Education Association) and the BAHA(Bournemouth Accommodation and Hotels Association) for YMS visa holders seeking employment in the resort town of Bournemouth.
My dream for the future is to become a crew of cruise ships traveling around the world. The skills required on board that ship are English and customer service skills. I am very lucky to have been able to use this program to meet the Marsham Court hotel, which is perfect for learning these things and is also a representative hotel in Bournemouth.
I have been working as a waitress at this hotel restaurant since September. There are a lot of new things for me, like how to arrange cutlery on a table, carrying two plates in one hand, learning about food allergies..., and so on. My job at the Marsham Court Hotel, where I can feel growing every day even if I make small mistakes every day, is a lot of fun for me. In addition, speaking with Customers who are native speakers and international co-workers through this job is a valuable opportunity to practice English skills acquired at language schools. When it comes to work-life balance, I am able to offer my weekly shift preferences and take holidays for me, much better both physically and mentally than when I worked in Japan for about five years before coming to the UK. Above all, my sense of fulfilment and happiness in life is definitely improved by having goals and dreams compared to when I was working in my country. I am grateful to the Marsham Court Hotel and all the colleagues at this hotel for accepting me. Through this work, I want to be able to give smiles and happiness to customers and work friends from now on. Thank you so much.
Role: Waiter/F&B Assistant
JONATHON WIECHERT
Nationality: German
Employment dates: July 2019 to December 2019
Jonathan started his placement as a waiter in our restaurant and very quickly, due to his enthusiasm and willingness to learn, was promoted to food and beverage assistant ,which meant he not only worked in the restaurant but he was also trained to work in all the hotels bars as well as becoming a conference porter.
Even though we knew Jonathan was only going to be at the hotel for a relatively short time we believed it was worth investing time and money in his training and development because everyone ‘wins’. The guests because they receive excellent professional service with a smile, colleagues benefit because they have a trained up team member with the same ethos as them and most importantly Jonathan benefited because he gained important work and life skills to enhance him and his future career.
We pride ourselves on developing all our team members as long as they show a willingness and enthusiasm to learn, work hard and always have a smile on their face.
Head of Training and Development, Simon Scarborough, followed up with Jonathan after his placement ended and he had returned home. This is what he had to say about the time he spent with us:-
‘I have learned so much and know that my experiences will not only help me in my career but I will also look back on a fantastic time at the hotel’.
It was my greatest pleasure working with you. I would have never thought that someone would encourage and help me like you did. Thank you!
Role: Waiter
MATTEO MARGOSSIAN
Nationality: Italian
Employment dates: March 2019 to January 2020
Matteo Margossian worked at the Marsham Court Hotel from the 26th March 2019 until 6th January 2020 and initially started as a waiter in the restaurant. He was very shy and nervous about speaking English but his strong work ethic shone through from the start.
We worked very hard with him to increase his confidence and once he started to relax more his English improved and his smiles became warmer. With his new found confidence and his natural commitment to hard work, we trained him to become a supervisor in the restaurant also incorporating wine waiter responsibilities.
Matteo requested that he wanted to be trained in the main bar and learn to be a Barista. We were delighted to work with him on gaining these new skills and he did a fantastic job. He was extremely customer focused and all the guests “loved him”.
In his last 6 months at the hotel all new starters in the bar and restaurant were “buddied up” with him. He was so patient and kind with them it helped them to settle in quickly and learn to work to the hotels high standards.
We were all very sad when Matteo returned to his native Italy in January 2020 as he was such a team player and so popular with everyone. He was a true asset to the hotel and there will always be a job for him at the Marsham Court.
Matteo sent us a lovely review at the end of his placement. Here’s what he had to say about the time that he spent at the Marsham Court:-
‘I’m Matteo, from Italy, I worked at the Marsham Court Hotel for about one year. I’m writing this review to let everybody know how wonderful it was to work with the Marsham Court team, it has been a wonderful experience, since the very start, managers and colleagues helped me a lot to introduce myself into the work.
It was my first experience in England, actually my first experience abroad, and it’s been fun and helpful, I learned a lot of things, met a lot of friends and had a lot of fun.
I firstly met Simon and the Restaurant Manager, both of them experts of their profession, then all the other managers.
It’s been a pleasure and I’m very grateful to all these people who taught me all they could.
I wanna say thank you to Rosie and all the management team.
Thank you very much! ‘
